Broad ambitions.

The Novus L Kit Carbonio Flow Saddle may sit at the pointy end of Selle Italia's saddle lineup, price-wise, but its 146mm width means that its actual sit platform is plenty wide to accommodate cyclists with correspondingly wide sit bones. The gradual taper to the elongated nose and its low weight mean this broader version of the already-broad Novus platform is for the cyclist whose broad ambitions span punchy attacks and long, static grinds during solo moves in the no man's land between a chasing pack and the distant summit.

The saddle's rails are made from the same CarboKeramic composite featured throughout Selle Italia's line. Combined with the slight engineered flex of the body shell's carbon/nylon matrix, the CarboKeramic rails smooth out rough roads without creating a trampoline effect that leaves you bouncing too much to spin a proper cadence. The saddle also features the signature Selle Italia cut-out down the center, though it's not as pronounced as other models, so the channel edges are more like flat plateaus than sharp ridges. The channel is flanked with just enough padding to maintain comfort while still saving a claimed 30g over the Novus Flow L Team Edition.

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Does not have a 7x9mm rail like the spec

Familiarity: I returned this product before using it

The specs for this saddle list it as having a 7x9mm oval rail. The saddle actually has a 7mm round rail, as is evident both by looking at the saddle in the box, as well as seeing its clearly listed as 7mm on the product box. I'm not sure if Selle Italia updated their design, but they've always had the traditional sized 7x9mm rails, which pretty much all carbon railed saddles seem to use, and what my seat clamp is designed for. Looks like a great saddle but returned it before being able to try it out.